


Blue

by ragewerthers



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F3S, Fluff, Gladio the head of Security, Hair Dye, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Modern AU, Ravus the lawyer, oblivious gladio, poor ravus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-02
Updated: 2020-03-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:29:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22990987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ragewerthers/pseuds/ragewerthers
Summary: Ravus has noticed that Gladio has been pulling away from him more and more.  He begins to wonder if perhaps it's because of him?  Is he too boring to hold the mans attention anymore?  Maybe he needs to spice things up a bit?  Sadly, it may be possible to 'dye' of embarrassment.
Relationships: Gladiolus Amicitia/Ravus Nox Fleuret
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14





	Blue

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bgn846](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bgn846/gifts).



> Hello, hello!!! This is another lovely F3S prompt from my friend bgn846! She requested:
> 
> "Modern day AU - Ravus the, (insert your career choice here) decides to die his hair one day to mix things up. His (insert lover here, some suggestions include, Aranea, Cindy, Ignis, or whom ever, Loqi?? ) might be getting bored and he thinks this will help. It does sort of, turns out his partner was having a bad week at work and it had nothing to do with him."
> 
> I hope that you enjoy it, my friend and I really enjoyed getting to write these two for you! :D
> 
> You can also find me on tumblr at: ragewerthers.tumblr
> 
> Enjoy! :D

“... and honestly, can you believe Aranea really did it? I know the clients were surprised,” Ravus chuckled as he finished recounting a  _ truly _ hilarious incident that had happened at the law firm today. To be fair, Aranea’s stubborn attitude was something that worked well when it came to finding the facts and hunting down information that pertained to their cases. However… sometimes her means of finding said information were less than law friendly.

He knew that Gladio would get a kick out of it though. The man worked as the head of security for one of the largest banks in Insomnia, but even he could find amusement in his assistant’s antics… at least without reporting him to the authorities.

“What do you think, darling?” Ravus asked, looking up from his almost finished dinner, his smile faltering slightly as he saw his partner.

Gladio had barely touched any of his food, looking like he was worlds away in his head and like he hadn’t just heard one of the most  _ hilarious  _ stories Ravus had ever told. Clearing his throat, Ravus gently nudged his partner’s foot under the table, watching as Gladio jumped slightly at the contact.

“Everything alright, Gladio? You seem rather… quiet this evening,” Ravus asked as Gladio seemed to finally realize where he was.

“Oh! I’m… yeah, I’m alright. Were you saying something?” Gladio asked, offering a small smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes as he finally focused back on him.

Giving a little sigh Ravus merely shook his head. “I was… nevermind. A little anecdote from work. Nothing more,” he said quietly as he picked up his glass of water to take a sip. Gladio seemed to take him at his word, finally taking a few bites from his meal.

To be honest, this wasn’t the first time that Gladio had seemed to drift away from him lately. Over the past week it felt like a gap was slowly starting to grow between them and for the life of him, Ravus couldn’t figure out why.

It started with longer hours at work which was quickly followed by dinners that were mostly in silence. Worse was when Gladio would seem to suddenly think of something and head off to make a phone call or send a text when they would both normally be talking about their days or settling in for the evening. Ravus always enjoyed those moments of just catching up with his partner, of the time when they were allowed to just enjoy each other’s company without the stresses of work and the day to bother them.

Now… it felt like he was intruding upon Gladio’s time and left an uncomfortable feeling slowly growing in his chest by the day.

His quiet ruminations were interrupted by the shrill chirp of Gladio’s phone going off and without missing a beat Gladio was up and out of his seat, grabbing it from the counter.

“Amicitia,” he answered, making his way to their bedroom so that he could talk to whomever was on the other end in private.

Sitting alone at the table, Ravus glanced around before sighing and standing.

“I… suppose I’ll just tidy up then, shall I?” he said to absolutely no one in particular. Hell, even the fern in the corner seemed to be ignoring him as he stood and began to collect their dishes. As he made his way over to the sink he could still hear Gladio talking on the phone, even hearing the deep rumble of his lovers chuckle at something the other party must have said.

And honestly? Hearing that simple sound made that uncomfortable feeling in his chest intensify.

He missed being the one to get that laughter from Gladio. 

He missed sharing the stories of their day and finding time with one another. 

He just... missed Gladio. 

He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d gotten a kiss to his brow or had been able to tempt the man into joining him on the sofa to enjoy some ridiculous show while they just cuddled and made fun of whatever played. 

Maybe… Gladio was growing bored of him?

He’d heard of that. Of couples growing apart simply because they had grown together so much that no spice or excitement remained.

Shaking his head he refocused on turning on the water to rinse off their dishes. Gods, he sounded like a melancholic housewife! But… truly… was he the reason that Gladio seemed to be pulling away?

He made quick work of their dishes, setting them aside to dry on the dish rack before starting to make his way toward the bedroom. He flipped the light switches off as he went, not really in the mood to spend another evening by himself out in the living room watching some silly program that he only enjoyed watching with someone he could banter about it with.

As he neared the bedroom he could still hear Gladio talking and for some reason he changed course, turning to enter their bathroom to tidy up before bed. Flicking the light on he turned to look at himself in the mirror, a small sigh escaping him as he turned on the faucet.

Why had he chickened out of going into their bedroom? It’s not like they had any secrets between them and Gladio had taken a number of phone calls in there. In the past Ravus had found no qualms in ducking in to grab his pajama’s, maybe stealing a kiss on the way back out. But with the distance between them lately it felt like he really was intruding even in their own home.

As he began brushing his teeth he thought over his own actions. The same question popping back up in his head.

Was he the reason for Gladio’s distance? Did the man find him too boring to be around that he would rather talk to his colleagues then spend time with him?

Glancing up into the mirror and catching sight of his frothy visage he winced slightly.

White hair pulled back into a loose ponytail…

Frumpy sweater to ward off the February chill…

Astrals damned sweatpants?!

He really had become a less then enticing presence!

He could remember the days he would dress to the nines to impress Gladio. Finding the best outfits to show himself off because the reactions he always got were fantastic. Now he looked like a walking laundry hamper. Not to mention that with winter upon them he hadn’t even gotten a little color to his already fair skin and seemed to be doing a remarkable impersonation of a snow white.

All in all every feature of himself screamed one word.

Boring.

Another chuckle echoed through the bathroom door and Ravus growled slightly in his chest, rinsing his mouth with as much petty anger as someone could rinse their mouth out with.

He  _ refused _ to lose Gladio simply because he had let himself go a bit. Had allowed himself to become so… so…  _ boring. _

Ravus was going to make some changes starting tomorrow and he was going to win Gladio back!

He could do this!

\------------------------------------

_ How could he have done this _ ?!?!

The day had started out so well! He had a plan and everything and now…  _ now!!! _

After his revelation last night, Ravus had taken his time in formulating a plan. Perhaps taking too long as by the time he made it to their room Gladio was already settled in bed and snoring softly, his phone not even plugged in properly.

He tried not to let the pang of hurt in his chest cut too deep at the thought that even a good night kiss seemed to be out of the question. Instead he made sure that Gladio’s phone was properly charging before settling down with even more resolve to right whatever was wrong.

That following morning he had woken up before Gladio to get ready for his day. He left a little note on the coffee table saying he would be out most of the day, but he hoped to see him later that evening for dinner.

Usually when he had left these notes he would receive some sort of text during the day from Gladio either making suggestive comments, teasing him or simply a sweet ‘I look forward to seeing you tonight.’ However, the lack of a notification on his phone only drove him on in his endeavor for the day and before long he was returning home, a new outfit at the ready and… a small box of hair dye.

After taking stock of himself and what may have been pushing Gladio away, Ravus had thought that perhaps a little color might add some spice back into their relationship? He had looked over a litany of colors and had settled on something a little more fun. He had found an understated blue that would bring out the greys and whites of his natural hair color and just add small pops of color through his locks.

At least… that had been the plan.

When he’d gotten home he had gone into the bathroom to start his hair transformation. The idea was doing a few blue highlights, nothing too outrageous just… fun and lively!

That was not what happened.

Apparently the plastic hair cap he was wearing that allowed some of his hair through to highlight and was  _ supposed  _ to leave the rest alone was more than a little faulty. At the end of his first attempt he had rinsed and removed the cap only to find blotches had bled through and stained into other parts of his hair. All in all it looked like an ink pen had broken and seeped over his head.

This was where attempt number two came in.

And made things so much worse.

Realizing at this point that he couldn’t get the color out he went for broke and decided to dye the rest of his hair to match.

What transpired next was what could only be called a comedy of errors. By the end, Ravus’ hair was an absolute fiasco. Bits of hair were still white, some were a weird teal blue and others were almost midnight blue in their darkness. And  _ somehow _ the earlier mistake blotches were still blatantly noticeable.

He had to fix this!

Maybe he could call Aranea to pick him up more blue dye to try and blend it all? Maybe there was a grey or white he could add into it to even out the color of the darker spots?

Maybe he should just shave it all off but if so… what about the one blue eyebrow?!

Sadly, fate decided it desperately wanted to kick him while he was down because before he could even think to pick up his phone he heard the front door opening and closing, Gladio’s voice soon announcing his return.

“Ravus? You home?” he heard, honestly surprised to actually be addressed after being treated like more of a fixture than a person lately.

“I… I’m in the bathroom! Don’t come in!” he shouted back, looking around him for he didn’t even know what!

“Is… everything okay? You sound a little… different?” his partner called back before the sound of footsteps moving down the hall reached his ears.

Quickly Ravus made sure the bathroom door was locked, refusing to allow Gladio to see him like this. If the man wasn’t already one foot out the door from sheer boredom in this relationship then seeing Ravus looking like he’d tried to become a blueberry certainly wouldn’t entice the man to stay.

“What?! I-It’s… nothing! I’m… it’s… nothing!” he rambled, met only with silence for a moment as he saw a shadow appearing under the door. After a moment the handle of the bathroom door shook as Gladio apparently didn’t understand bathroom boundaries and Ravus took a step back.

“Ravus something’s definitely not right. Are you okay?” Gladio asked again, making Ravus’ heart beat a little faster as fear and embarrassment began to completely engulf him.

Apparently his lack of an answer only fueled Gladio’s worry as the door shook a little more forcefully. To be fair, Gladio’s entire job was making sure things were alright and everyone was safe. Obviously he would be able to read that there was something wrong in this situation and it wouldn’t sit well with him.

“Ravus? Ravus please answer me? Are you hurt?” he called again and this time Ravus literally saw the door bowing as Gladio seemed to be pushing more of his weight against it. He apparently forgot that Gladio had the strength of a behemoth with how gentle the man normally was with him and honestly the last thing he wanted was for Gladio to hurt himself by breaking down the door.

“No! No I’m… gods, I’m fine,” he called back, his voice tapering off into a strained whisper. “I-I’m coming out, but please… let me explain before you say anything.”

The door creaked with Gladio’s weight slowly moving away from it and Ravus took a deep breath as he reached forward and unlocked the door, opening it slowly to face his fate.

“Ravus you’re really starting to wor-......,” Gladio's sentence halted instantly as Ravus stepped out into the hallway, the lawyer’s gaze firmly fixed on the carpeted hallway as he refused to meet his partners eyes.

“I um… had a small mishap with some… hair dye,” Ravus whispered quietly, his heart beating rapidly in his chest from fear and worry. “I wanted to surprise you. Mix things up... a little.”

He could hear Gladio take a breath to say something and then pause as if thinking better of himself.

“I mean it’s… definitely a surprise?” Gladio tried, but it only served to make Ravus smile humorlessly..

“Well… though it’s not quite the effect I was looking for it did ultimately allow me to reach my goal,” he said quietly.

“What goal was that?” Gladio asked, still sounding more confused than anything.

Ravus closed his eyes for a moment to compose himself before looking up at Gladio.

“You finally noticed me,” he whispered.

Gladio’s eyes widened as he heard this and the confusion he had only seemed to double. “What? I notice you,” Gladio said quietly.

“No… you don’t, Gladio,” Ravus countered, frowning more and feeling anger starting to prickle its way through the layers of embarrassment and uncertainty that had taken residence in his chest. “What did I wear yesterday, hm? What did we talk about at dinner?”

Pausing a moment at the questions, Gladio seemed to be flounder for an answer. “You were wearing… we… it was a conversation about… your sister!” he finally answered, seeming to grasp onto a memory he deemed recent. “It was about your sister and how her trip is going in Altissia.”

“Luna returned from her trip a week ago, Gladiolus!” Ravus shot back, the anger only growing and the shock that appeared over his partners face did nothing to make him feel better. “Tell me… who called yesterday? What did you talk about with them?”

Gladio’s surprised expression from learning that he’d apparently missed an entire week morphed into something akin to guilt. “It was Nyx… from work. We were discussing the extra security measures that we’ve had to implement lately.”

Ravus couldn’t stand to look at the guilt written over Gladio’s features, his head ducking down once more as he shook his head. “I understand that your job requires a lot from you. I do. But it feels like you only light up anymore when there is a call from work or something to do with it and… you just seem so… so…  _ bored _ with me anymore that I ju-...,”

“What?!” Gladio shouted in surprise, making Ravus jump slightly as he glanced back up. Soon he found his jaw cradled in his partners strong hands, the touch so gentle he was afraid to move lest it stop. The look Gladio leveled at him with those amber eyes was so intense he thought his heart would melt from it. “Ravus. I have never…  _ will _ never be bored with you.”

“Really?” Ravus whispered though his heart still couldn’t believe him completely. “Because I feel like all I’ve done is… bother you recently. We don’t talk like we used to. We don’t joke around or go out. And it’s not like I’m looking to be swept off my feet and taken to luxurious places! It’s just… I miss… spending time with you when you’re actually present.”

Ravus felt a tightness in his chest and swallowed thickly, hating himself for this weakness. “It’s no fun watching those awful reality shows without you beside me to make fun of them. Or to hear you laugh when we talk about our days together. I just… miss being something important in your life.”

“Gods,” Gladio whispered, his expression looking absolutely heartbroken and making Ravus regret speaking so openly. However, before he could utter a single apology he found himself engulfed in Gladio’s arms and  _ Astrals _ had he missed the warmth and safety his lovers embrace gave him. Instantly he wrapped his own arms around Gladio, soaking in as much of this affection that he had missed so much.

“Ravus… I’m so, so sorry,” Gladio whispered, still refusing to let go and honestly, Ravus wasn’t too keen either. Hiding his face against the man’s broad shoulder he felt Gladio’s hand soothing along his spine. “Work has gotten out of hand recently. But that is absolutely no excuse for how I’ve been behaving. I shouldn’t have let it take control of everything and make you feel like I was bored of you or like you were bothering me. Nothing could be farther from the truth! You are what keeps me sane, but apparently I have been taking it all for granted. I’m sorry, Ravus. Gods, I’m sorry.”

Ravus was an incredibly proud man. However hearing all of this and realizing that he wasn’t pushing Gladio away, rather the man had allowed himself to get swallowed up by his work, did startle a slightly watery chuckle out of him.

“So… you really aren’t bored with me?” he whispered, his voice still a little thick even as he felt Gladio shaking his head as the man nuzzled against the top of his head.

“Never. How could I? You are the most amazing, wonderful and patient man I’ve ever met. And I swear that I’m going to make this up to you for being such an ass,” Gladio promised leaning back to look at him.

Ravus glanced up and instantly his face blanched. He had forgotten about the still damp hair dye and apparently so had Gladio. When the man had nuzzled against him he had managed to imprint a rather large amount of the dye onto his right cheek and beard.

Taking in Ravus’ expression, Gladio’s eyes widened, apparently thinking he’d said something wrong. “I-I mean… I know that saying I’m sorry isn’t enough for how I’ve been acting, but I swear I-...”

“No no! Gladio it’s… my hair… you are… I’ve tainted you!” he finally managed to get out, watching as realization dawned in Gladio’s eyes.

Raising a hand to his cheek, Gladio brushed his fingers over the now damp skin, pulling his hand away to find his fingertips imprinted with the same blue. Instantly a little smile appeared over his lips and a deep, rumbling chuckle escaped him.

Hearing the noise instantly had Ravus’ heart beating a mile a minute and before long he felt a smile tugging at the corners of his lips too. “Oh, Gladio. I’m sorry, love. I look ridiculous and now I’m apparently trying to get you to join me.”

Gladio snorted at that and shook his head. “You don’t look ridiculous,” he murmured, getting an unimpressed look from Ravus and laughing a bit more. “Well I mean… yeah, you look a little blue… but… perhaps I can help fix it?”

The comment did take Ravus by surprise and judging by the look Gladio was giving him, one so tender and full of love he realized the double meaning behind the comment. A soft and honest smile finally appeared over his lips as well and he nodded. “I know you will,” he agreed, soon finding a gentle kiss pressed to his lips, Gladio’s arms pulling him closer once more.

Who knew that all he had to do to remedy all of this… was to be a little blue?


End file.
